Drum (South African magazine)

Drum (South African magazine)
source
Title	Drum
Category	Magazine
Frequency	Monthly
Firstdate	1951
Country	South Africa
Language	English

Drum (South African magazine) is a landmark South African periodical founded in 1951 that became a leading voice among urban African, Coloured, and Indian readers during the apartheid era. It documented social life, politics, and culture in townships and urban centers, combining reportage, fiction, photography, and investigative journalism to profile figures from Nelson Mandela to Miriam Makeba and movements such as the African National Congress and Black Consciousness Movement.

History

Drum was established in the context of postwar urbanization and segregation policies tied to the Natives (Urban Areas) Act era and the rise of township journalism, with early editors and proprietors navigating relations with publishers linked to Benson & Hedges-era commercial structures and vernacular press networks in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban. Its development intersected with major events including the Defiance Campaign, the 1950s Emergency and the enactment of the Group Areas Act, while contributors reported on incidents like the Sharpeville Massacre and the evolving role of the Pan Africanist Congress. Editorially, Drum engaged with debates around leaders such as Albert Luthuli, Olive Schreiner, Walter Sisulu, and activists connected to the South African Communist Party and trade unions like the South African Congress of Trade Unions.

Editorial profile and content

Drum combined investigative features, short fiction, serialized biographies, photo-essays and popular culture columns, often foregrounding personalities such as Hugh Masekela, Brenda Fassie, Sophiatown musicians, and writers from the African Writers Series. Its pages mixed coverage of legal cases involving figures like Eddie Daniels and Nelson Mandela with profiles of entertainers such as Josephine Baker and sports stars like Basil D'Oliveira and Moses Mabhida. Drum’s cultural reportage engaged with venues and phenomena tied to Shebeen culture, Township Jazz, and film projects linked to directors like Gavin Hood and Oliver Schmitz while carrying poetry and prose resonant with authors in the tradition of Nadine Gordimer and Alan Paton.

Notable contributors and photographers

The magazine was a training ground for writers, journalists and photographers who later shaped South African media, with contributors and staff including authors and editors connected to Can Themba, Es'kia Mphahlele, Richard Rive, Nat Nakasa, Bloke Modisane, and photographers aligned with Jürgen Schadeberg, Peter Magubane, Gideon Mendel, and Bob Gosani. Other notable figures associated with Drum’s pages included journalists and cultural commentators who later collaborated with institutions such as Rand Daily Mail, Sunday Times (South Africa), The Star (South Africa), and broadcasters at South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Cultural and political impact

Drum played a catalytic role in shaping urban black identity, amplifying voices that intersected with movements around Black Consciousness Movement, the anti-apartheid campaigns of the United Democratic Front, and the international solidarity networks linking to Anti-Apartheid Movement (UK), ANC Youth League, and artists associated with Paul Simon-era cultural exchange controversies. Its photojournalism documented townships, pass law enforcement, and funerals that became emblematic images alongside reporting on trials such as those of Rivonia Trial defendants and on cultural icons like Miriam Makeba and Hugh Masekela who toured internationally.

Circulation, distribution, and audience

Drum targeted urban African, Coloured, and Indian readers across metropolitan centers including Soweto, Alexandra (township), Kensington (Johannesburg), Hillbrow, and Bonteheuwel, circulating through informal networks such as spaza shops, shebeens and railway bookstalls used by commuters to Park Station (Johannesburg). Distribution strategies responded to censorship pressures from authorities enforcing legislation like the Internal Security Act and customs controls affecting transnational shipment to readers in neighboring territories including Lesotho, Botswana, and Namibia.

Controversies and legal issues

Throughout its history Drum faced censorship, bans, and legal challenges connected to apartheid-era statutes such as the Suppression of Communism Act and proclamations under states of emergency, with contributors frequently subpoenaed or targeted in security police operations tied to the Civil Cooperation Bureau and other apparatuses. The magazine endured libel suits, raids that seized negatives and archives, and editorial disputes mirroring conflicts seen at outlets like New Nation and Staffrider; individual staffers encountered detention and trial alongside defendants associated with incidents like the 1986 State of Emergency.

Legacy and influence on South African media

Drum’s reportage, photography, and fiction established templates later adopted by post-apartheid publications and broadcasters, influencing editorial practices at titles such as True Love (magazine), Elle (South Africa), and newspapers including the Mail & Guardian and institutions like University of the Witwatersrand journalism programs. Its alumni populated newsrooms and cultural institutions, contributing to archives preserved by entities like the Robben Island Museum and the Constitutional Court of South Africa oral history projects, while its stylistic and political legacies resonate in contemporary coverage of figures including Cyril Ramaphosa, Thabo Mbeki, and movements such as #FeesMustFall.

Category:South African magazines Category:Defunct magazines of South Africa